First in decade, cotton rates sustain 30% above MSP

Opening on a higher side, prices of raw continued to soar probably first time in last one decade with regions Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture produce Marketing committee (APMC) recording over Rs 8,500 per quintal.

Amid the windfall, rumours of raw cotton fetching Rs 9,500/quintal at Achalpur open market went viral in several Social Media groups on Saturday. A purported bill issued by a ginner too was attached to the social media post.

Yet the mood among farmers and other APMC members is upbeat. The rawcotton ratesnormally come down after the opening day, but this year high demand has ensured growers get nearly 30 to 40% more than the minimum support price of Rs6,025 per quintal.

On November 2, the crop committee of Cotton Association of India (CAI) would be meeting to assess the shortfall in production.

Maharashtra govt warms up to blockchain tech for tamper-proof education certificates

Advances in technology come with their own set of challenges. One such challenge is when miscreants use these advancements to suit their vested interests: case in point being the forging of paper-based documents using sophisticated graphics tools.

It is in this context that the move by the Maharashtra government to partner with LegitDoc, an Indian blockchain start-up, signals intent on part of the authorities to tackle such misuse of technology. With this PARTNERSHIP, the Maharashtra government has reposed faith innew-age blockchain solutionsto fight fraud. The tie-up with LegitDoc will help the government issue tamper-proof diploma certificates.

This bold step by the Maharashtra government comes at a time while the Union Government is yet to take a call on legalizing or banning cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. This new-age technology sidesteps solutions built on centralized architecture such as DigiLocker, that have a single point of failure irrespective of the protection levels that go into it.

The state cabinet was presented with the global warming report of the Intergovernmental Panel onClimate Change, with an overall focus onMaharashtraand an emphasis on its coastal belt, particularly Mumbai.

Calling for mitigating measures, the Environment department, while making the presentation, reiterated that if temperatures rise by 2-2.5 degrees Celsius on account of https://exam.pscnotes.com/Climate-change”>Climate Change, the city and the state will be among the worlds worst-affected spots.

The department warned that if one continues with business as usual then Mumbai and other coastal areas face the prospect of submergence, and central Maharashtra of severe drought. It said that forests, instead of acting as carbon sinks, will burn due to fires.

Bone Tissue Regeneration in Pune University

Savitribai Phule Pune University in India synthesised a nano biomaterial with a stable link between two Molecules. The advancement could soon aid in tissue regeneration

About Bone tissue regeneration:

Bone defect of critical size due to trauma or disease. These are extremely difficult to repair through natural host tissue Growth.

As a result, there is a need to fill these defects with a bridging (usually porous) material (termed scaffold), which should also promote the regeneration of new bone tissue when combined with relevant cells and signalling molecules.

The biomaterials of choice for the development of such scaffolds should have bioactive properties, which means they should react with physiological fluids and form tenacious for bone formation.

46% Aaple Sarkar Kendras non-operational in state

Around 46% of Aaple Sarkar Seva Kendras were non-functional inMaharashtra, a recent review meeting of the noted.
Of the 37,000 kendras in the state, only 20,000 were functioning properly, mainly in the urban areas, a senior official of the Maharashtra State Commission for Right to Services said.

Many citizens have complained about being either denied services or being overcharged at these kendras.

The state government enacted the Maharashtra Right to Public Service (MRTPS) Act, 2015, for transparent, efficient and timely delivery of public services to citizens, and to bring Transparency and Accountability among public authorities. Aaple Sarkar Seva Kendras are online service-providing centres.

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India in its report released in March stated that half of the kendras were not providing the notified services.

The report also stated that their performance on the delivery of timely services was far from satisfactory.

The CAG report was based on the delivery of services under the RTS Act from 2015 till 2021.

The report also stated that the online portal lacked proper documentation and monitoring of delivery of services was inadequate because of a shortfall in inspection offices.

It mentioned that 27% of the municipal councils and 35% of gram panchayats in the state do not have any centres to serve citizens.

Last month Maharashtra GST receipts down 36% over April, but up 59% from May 2020

In a clear indication of the economic hit of the lockdown-like restrictions inMaharashtra, state GSTcollectionsplummeted by 36.4% between April and May. The curbs announced to control the second wave of Covid clamped down on most sectors barring Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture, manufacturing, construction and essential Services. Currently, non-essential retail has been allowed to open in a limited manner.

GST collections in April reflected the transactions made in March. However, receipts in May reflect the transactions after the lockdown-like curbs began.

The latest data shows that GST collections decreased from Rs 22,012 crore in April to Rs 13,399 crore in Maya fall of Rs 8,130 crore.

GST is a consumption-based tax and is an indicator of economic activity.

Maharashtra had ended the pandemic-struck year of 2020-21 with GST collections that were 11% lower than 2019. Data showed that the state collected 1.6 lakh crore worth of GST in 2020-21 compared to 1.8 lakh crore in 2019-20. The receipts had dipped by Rs 20,609 crore.

The state has been pressing the Centre to settle its pending GST compensation dues, which are currently Rs 24,000 crore.

Policy period extension for industries

The state cabinet decided to extend the period for the Electronics, Space and DEFENCE andReadymade Garmentindustry policies issued by theIndustries Department.

These policies will remain in force till new policies of the respective subjects are prepared.Maharashtra ElectronicsPolicy-2016 and Incentives for Fab Projects under it expired on March 31, 2023.

Flattened Sedimentary Industrial Complex Policy-2018 forReadymade Garment Manufacturing, Gems and Jewellery, Micro Electronics and Engineering Componentshas expired on 13 February 2023. Therefore, it was decided to extend these policies.

Maratha quota granted by Maharashtra govt constitutional, Centre tells SC

Maharashtrahas the legislative competence for granting reservation quota to Marathas and its decision is constitutional as the 102nd amendment does not denude a state of the power to declare its list of Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC), the Centre told The Supreme Court.

The 102nd Constitution amendment Act of 2018 inserted Articles 338B, which deals with the structure, duties and powers of the National Commission for Backward Class (NCBC), and 342A dealing with power of the President to notify a particular caste as SEBC as also of Parliament to change the list.

The , while upholding the law in June 2019, had held that 16 per cent reservation was not justifiable and the quota should not exceed 12 per cent in EMPLOYMENT and 13 per cent in admissions.

Govt health hubs in Maharashtra to offer high-end care

Super-speciality medical Services are being readied across state-run medical colleges and hospitals in Maharashtra, Health officials told TOI on Tuesday. The move aims to help the poor in urban and rural areas access high-end care like surgeries of the brain, urinary tract systems, heart or stomach.

The move will help get permanent super-speciality faculties at 24 government-run medical colleges and hospitals in the state.

Maharashtra to invest Rs 50 crore on solar fencing to reduce man-animal conflict

In a major move to curb increasing man-animal conflict, the has decided to give impetus to solar fencing to farms by spending Rs 50 crore by March-end. The project is expected to benefit at least 33,000 beneficiaries inMaharashtras Protected Areas in the first phase.

The PCCF informed the scheme is a part of Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Jan Van Yojana under which an individual beneficiary will have to bear 25% (Rs 5,000) cost and above of the solar fencing, and 75% (Rs 15,000) whichever is less shall be borne by the forest department.

The scheme will be implemented through the active participation of joint forest management committees (JFMCs) and eco-development committees (EDCs).